BABSON PARK, Mass. – The Connecticut College women's basketball team fell to Babson by a 77-46 score at Staake Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon. The Camels, who last played on Feb. 15th, 2020 in a regular season finale matchup against Amherst, became the first NESCAC program in any sport to begin competing this winter.
 
The first quarter was a seesaw battle which featured eight ties and a lead change. Junior Audrey Shaev (Scarsdale, N.Y.) opened the scoring with a trey from the left corner, and classmate Jenna Whelan (Bernardsville, N.J.) made it 5-2 by beating her defender with a backdoor cut. Nicole Hiller gave the Beavers the lead for the first time at 8-7 with 7:29 on the clock, which set the tone for the rest of the close frame.
 
Connecticut College (0-1) carried a 16-15 edge through one quarter of play courtesy of a good jumper by junior Claire Gulbin (Wilton, Conn.), but the Beavers broke loose in the second and outscored the visitors by a 24-9 margin over the next 10 minutes of play. After Shaev gave the Camels a 23-21 advantage by drilling another shot from long range, Katie Jones converted a layup to spark a 16-0 run by the hosts over the next 6:23. Samantha Smith converted a one-handed pass from Megan Bauman to eventually give the Beavers a 39-25 cushion at recess.
 
The Beavers picked up right where they left off in the third quarter and put up 24 points for the second consecutive frame. The margin grew to as many as 27 at 60-33 when Bauman stole the ball and found for a layup with 1:26 on the clock, and the sophomore canned a 3-pointer to give the hosts a 63-37 advantage through 30 minutes of action. The Camels came no closer the rest of the way.
 
Hiller posted a double-double by racking up 15 points and 15 rebounds to pace Babson (7-0), which remained undefeated by recording an assist on 22 of its 31 field goals. She also blocked three shots. Kelly Walsh led all scorers with 19 points, while Smith finished with 15 points and three steals. Bauman contributed 10 to go along with seven helpers.
 
The Camels got a strong effort from Jaycie Rojik (Scituate, Mass.), who recorded a team-high nine points to go along with three rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Shaev scored eight points, and senior Casey Walsh (Phoenixville, Pa.) grabbed eight rebounds.
 
Connecticut College will look to avenge the setback to the Beavers when the team treks back to Staake Gymnasium for another 1 p.m. matinee tomorrow afternoon.